Wednesday, January 20, 2010

Powder Post Beetles - Eeeeuuuwww

Not that you can see it but there is a tiny hole located diagonally between the two knots

I think I have a case of the powder post beetles! I have this lovely (okay, I think it's lovely) piece of antique Danish farm furniture in my dining room and in the last few months I've noticed a little sawdust gathering on a glass shelf we installed. It should have had wooden shelf but my husband creatively installed a light in the center and replaced the wood shelf with glass to help light that section of the cabinet. At first we thought it was dust from where the light was hung but I washed everything down and the sawdust came back.

To me a beautiful piece - with bugs!

What do I do? I've been online and one of the schools of entomology recommended treating withTim-Bor. Has anyone tried any other successful treatments?When I bought the piece I loved the markings in the legs (above) and some spots looked as if bugs had been there decades ago - but I don't I want to keep bugs in the furniture!!!! Help! How do these bugs find furniture to munch on?

7 comments:

This is what I would do:Empty your garage of anything you might consume. Drag the whole buffet in there. Let loose one of those "bombs" that kill pests and wait two days. Then open garage and let it air till the smell is gone.

There is a very toxic product on the market which must be injected with a syringe in each little hole (you can't miss a single one) but it means you have to breathe it all the time you are working with it. If you opt for it, get a mask and THICK gloves. Also, remove any pets from the house.

I did the syringe method and saved the chest of drawers but felt queasy for a couple of days afterward. I would try the bomb if i had to do it again.

This is a lovely hutch! Did you call a professional exterminator? They may have a solution. Next I'd try calling etymology departments at a university again and see i there was a non toxic way to ill the beetle ...maybe blasting it with dry ice to kill the beetle larva? Good luck!

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Welcome to Jojo's Joys, a place where I share bits and pieces of my daily living adventures here in Georgia and from lots of other places. I hope you’ll linger a bit to read a post or two and while you are at it, leave me a note and let me know what you've been up to. It’s always nice to hear from blog friends. Some people know me as Cheryl but my sweet granddaughters call me Jojo. Thanks for stopping by – hope to see you again, real soon!